Ancient Mysteries - Season 3

It remained hidden behind walls of sheer rock for more than 2,000 years. In 1812, Johann Burckhardt ventured into the Jordanian desert and discovered hundreds of structures stretching for miles along narrow canyons: the ancient city of Petra. Narrated by Leonard Nimoy, ANCIENT MYSTERIES® journeys into the past, unlocking the secrets long held captive behind Jordan's sandstone cliffs. Nearly 200 years after its discovery, archaeologists are still astonished at the ruins of Petra. The city evokes wonder in all who behold it--who were the people who carved these structures into solid rock, and how? Wander through what was once a thriving, sophisticated city and glean insight into the Nabataeans, the ancient people who lived and worked here. What caused their strange disappearance? Interviews with archaeologists and anthropologists and stunning location footage illuminate an incredible account of THE HIDDEN CITY OF PETRA.

The court of King Arthur, Camelot was at the center of a world of magic and honor. But what lies behind this captivating legend?

The exploits of Eric the Red. The legend of Leif Ericson. The struggle for power the bond of a family and the courage to sail beyond a dark and dangerous ocean. Guided by their hopes the explorers of the North moved their horizon west in an odyssey of ice and uncertainity. Leaving Norway for Iceland and an inauspicious tundra they named Greenland the Norse in their long boats proved sturdy enough to reach one more distant shore--VINLAND. At the dawn of the century with the chance to settle a new home the long search seemed over and the future bright. Yet their stay proved so brief as to almost escape history until a fantastic find just thirty years ago by Helge Ingstad.

It is one of the most puzzling tales to come out of the European Age of Discovery. And yet, the alleged search for the Fountain of Youth by Spanish explorer Ponce de León was almost certainly influenced by folklore from many centuries before. In this tale of a quest for immortality, explore the origins of the powerful belief in water mythology - said to be traced back at least as far as the third century. Listen to leading historians propose that despite the account of León's venerable pursuit, he was actually driven by dreams of gold and riches, not the fabled fountain. Or is it possible that when the famed explorer alighted on Florida's shores, he wasn't looking for the fountain at all? The Quest for the Fountain of Youth is the ultimate examination o this much-debated, timeless legend.

A tale told through the centuries of a lost, hidden civilization that lives in an euphoric state of peace and harmony enclosed by impassable mountains.

Two-thousand years ago, Rome was an all-powerful empire and Pompeii was one of its prosperous provincial towns - until Mount Vesuvius exploded in the largest eruption ever recorded. In a matter of hours the thriving city was entombed under a thick layer of ash and debris, undiscovered for centuries. Ancient Mysteries® journeys to the first century to explore the remarkable city of Pompeii. Recreate the events leading up to the explosion and learn how the ash kept the city and its inhabitants - the only significant discovery of Roman Bodies ever - in a unique state of preservation. Wander through the ancient streets of this sophisticated society and witness current excavations. Interviews with archeologists and historians, extensive location footage, and archival documents - including one remaining eyewitness account - shed eerie light on the cataclysmic eruption of Pompeii, a city frozen in time.

For thousands of years, the rich history of ancient Egypt was sealed off from the world, a mystery obscured by the pictorial language of hieroglyphics. But in 1799, the breakthrough needed to decipher the hieroglyphs was accidentally discovered. The Rosetta Stone -- a cryptic, black stone tabled -- held the key to knowledge of ancient Egypt. Yet it could not be translated until 1822, twenty-three years after the discovery, when its meaning was finally revealed by Francois Champollion, a young French scholar. Ancient Mysteries explores his struggle to decipher the Rosetta Stone and the glorious secrets it uncovered.